Virtualization software and hardware architecture have evolved to support the concept of “device remapping.” This is the ability to take a physical device and map it to a dedicated virtual machine (VM) where the VM has complete control of the device. Optionally, the VM may offer the device's capabilities and services to other VMs, typically by implementing a device model that connects to virtual devices in other VMs. The ability to directly map a native device to a VM enables the VM to use the native capabilities of the device and interact with minimal possible overhead. “Virtual Appliance” models such as intrusion prevention or network isolation capabilities find it optimal to use this direct mapping architecture as it provides the opportunity to optimize performance and capabilities of the solution. Although direct mapping of devices works fine when a single appliance is installed on a computer platform, issues arise when multiple appliances are simultaneously installed and all wish to gain direct access to physical devices on the platform.